Residents, business owners, and artists unite to paint first-ever "With Me Comes A Cure" mural; project will be the centerpiece of planned community garden; ceremony planned for May 22
WHAT: Artists and residents of the West Side neighborhood
of Austin will resume work this week on an AIDS awareness mural that will become the centerpiece of a community garden.
The 15 x 30 foot mural, "Austin Is Doing Something ( A.I.D.S. ) ," was inspired by With Me Comes A Cure, an awareness campaign of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago ( AFC ) designed primarily to address the growing HIV epidemic among African Americans and stress the importance of developing an AIDS vaccine.
The Cure campaign chose Austin for the mural project due to the high numbers of STD infections, including HIV, in the area. The mural was designed by artist Carla Carrand is the result of a year-long collaboration between residents, business owners, AFC, the Sankofa Cultural Arts & Business Center, and Critical Massive, an artist collective. On April 17 the wall was prepped and primed.
WHERE: The project is taking shape on the northeast corner of West Chicago and North Mayfield avenues, a few doors down from the
Sankofa Cultural Arts and Business Center ( 5820 W. Chicago Avenue ) .
To view a rendering of the mural design, visit:http://twitpic.com/1htlzb
WHEN: Wednesday, April 28 and Thursday, April 29. 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. each day.
Wednesday production: Mural layout and outlines; fill-in work; text painted.Thursday production: Detail work; text, logos, and stencil work, as needed.
Tuesday from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.: Mural image will be projected and traced onto the wall.
If the mural is not completed Thursday, work will resume Saturday,
May 1. This schedule is weather dependent, so please contact Johnathon Briggs for updates.
NEXT: A dedication ceremony and "edutainment" event will take place Saturday, May 22 at the mural site. The event commemorates national HIV Vaccine Awareness Day ( May 18 ) .
Sponsors: AIDS Foundation of Chicago, BeTheGeneration.nih.gov, Because I Care Inc., Citizens to Elect Deborah L. Graham, Malcolm and Stacia Crawford, Critical Massive, Congressman Danny K. Davis, Friends of Don Harmon, NHVREI ( NIAID HIV Vaccine Research and Education Initiative ) , The Office LLC, Project WISH ( We're Invested in Stopping HIV ) , Sankofa Cultural Arts & Business Center, James and Margaret Spearman, The Association of Clinical Trials Services ( TACTS ) .
Read more at: Austin Talks.org — "Work underway on AIDS mural in Austin"
